Smokers of cigarettes, cigars and the like are well aware nowadays of how their smoking disturbs and endangers those around them. Non-smokers especially are disturbed by the health risks associated with inhaling the second-hand smoke given off from the burning tip of a cigarette. Many people are also concerned about the risk of fire caused by a discarded cigarette that has been improperly extinguished or by a burning cigarette that has been lost or left unattended.
It has been found that the repeated extinguishing and lighting of a cigarette between puffs leads to a significant reduction in both second hand smoke and fire hazards. Various devices have been developed for extinguishing a cigarette between puffs and examples are provided below.
One such device is provided by U.S. Pat. No. 2,309,011 issued to Porter. This patent describes a device that may be carried by a smoker and used to periodically extinguish a cigarette. The device may either be used on its own or be integrally connected to a lighter. The primary object of this device is to extinguish the cigarette in such a way that its flavour will not be impaired when it is lighted again. One problem with the device is that it does not facilitate the removable attachment of lighters to the extinguisher unit. This is important since it is sometimes desirable to use the lighter separately from the extinguisher. Also, many lighters nowadays are disposable and it is desirable that the lighter can be replaced once it has expired.
Another device is provided in U.S. Pat. No. 4,473,084 issued to Marshall. This patent describes an ashtray having a receiver that is adapted to support and extinguish a cigarette. The ashtray includes a storage space of pre-determined shape for receiving a lighter. The ashtray may not be conveniently carried however and is not adapted to grip onto lighters of different shapes or sizes.
What is needed is a portable extinguishing device that overcomes the above problems and that permits a smoker to conveniently extinguish and relight his cigarette between puffs.